


the veil is thin (and getting thinner)

by more1weasley



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: F/M, Family, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Halloween, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:22:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27319927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/more1weasley/pseuds/more1weasley
Summary: It seemed fitting to be woken up by screaming on the morning of Halloween, even if Julie didn’t exactly appreciate the loud wake up call.
Relationships: Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson
Comments: 66
Kudos: 320





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, everyone!! This is my first Julie and the Phantoms fanfic, so please be kind!
> 
> This was born from a conversation on discord and, as usual, things spiraled and here we are.
> 
> Shout out for all those amazing people from Julie and the Fat Ones ♡♡
> 
> Also, especial thanks to the lovely [amandaithink](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amandaithink/pseuds/amandaithink) for betaing this! You rock! Any mistakes are my own :)
> 
> Anyways, it's not Halloween for me anymore, but I'm sure it still is somewhere, lmao.
> 
> Enjoy!

**PART** I

* * *

It seemed fitting to be woken up by screaming on the morning of Halloween, even if Julie didn’t exactly appreciate the loud wake up call.

***

The boys were hanging out at the house while they waited for Julie to wake up so they could practice. The nights were usually mindnumbly boring, so boring that they could probably die again from sheer _boredom_.

They couldn’t play, because Julie forbade it. Most lifers were asleep, so they couldn’t people-watch. Sometimes they spent the nights club-hopping, checking out the new music and differences between the ‘90s and now. Alex left to hang out with Willie as often as he could manage, which left Luke and Reggie with nothing to do other than _die_ from boredom.

It was one such night; Alex had left to see Willie, while Reggie and Luke decided to hang out at the house. They’d spent most of the night playing Carlos’ videogames (they totally _rocked_ Guitar Hero, even if it was on volume one), and just as the sun was rising, Reggie went upstairs to ‘subtly make things easier for Ray when he woke up’ - those were his exact words. 

Just because Luke didn’t mention how creepy it was for Reggie to go into Ray’s room while he was sleeping, it didn’t mean he didn’t _think_ about it.

Fondly rolling his eyes at Reggie’s weirdness, Luke focused all of his energy on his hands to pull the refrigerator’s door open. It was easier to pick up and touch things now, especially after the Orpheum and being able to hold Julie, but it still took some concentration.

Carlos found him a few minutes later, just gazing longingly at the Molina’s fridge.

“Uhh, what are you doing?”

Luke glanced behind him at Carlos before turning back to the food, sighing heavily since he knew the door would soon be closed in his face. It took him a second, but Carlos’ words eventually registered and he whipped back around. There was no one else in the kitchen. More importantly, the boy was looking _right_ at him. But no… there was no way he could see him, right? Right. It was impossible, Carlos couldn’t have been talking to- 

“So? If you’re not gonna eat anything, you should shut the door,” he said, crossing his arms and raising his eyebrows at Luke. “You’re just wasting power otherwise.”

Luke gaped at him another half minute before shaking himself out of it. Dumbly and without looking, he reached behind him and closed the door.

“You can see me?”

“Uh, yeah? Duh.”

He couldn’t help the incredulous laughter that left him. “You can _actually_ see me?”

“Yeah, now that you mention it, it _is_ kinda weird. Why can I see you?” Carlos asked, going to the fridge to get some orange juice. Luke stepped out of his way; he didn’t want to freak the kid out by walking through him. Although, he seemed to be taking it incredibly well. Not that _that_ was a surprise; after all, the kid already knew about them (the ‘boy band’ comment came to mind).

“I-I don’t know. We’ve been getting stronger since the Orpheum, maybe this is just the next level.” Luke shrugged, quickly putting the confusion behind him. “But who cares, little man? Nice to officially meet you, I’m Luke.”

Carlos frowned, offended. “Hey, who you calling ‘little’, Casper?”

Luke laughed, for once he actually recognized the reference - Reggie had dragged them all to watch the Casper as soon as it came out, never mind that they barely had enough money to eat, let alone go to the movies, but it had been a fun night. Oh, the irony that now _they_ were the friendly ghosts 

“And I already know who you are,” Carlos continued, not even looking at him as he drank his juice as if he didn't have a care in the world while Luke stared, more confused than ever.

“You do? How?”

“I found your demo in the loft,” he said, shrugging nonchalantly, then turned serious eyes at the older boy. “I’ve got a more important question for you,” he paused, and Luke waited with nervous apprehension. “Are you the one using my computer to look up rock music sites?”

Air he didn’t actually need left his lungs in a relieved laugh. For a second there he could’ve sworn Carlos was going to ask him about Julie… Not that there was anything for him to ask about, of course. Yeah.

“No, no. That’s probably Reggie.”

“Huh. He’s the bassist, right? Is he around?” Carlos asked, looking around the kitchen as if the other boy would suddenly jump out from behind the counter.

“Oh, yeah, he was just-” The rest of the sentence, ‘hanging out with your dad’ hung in the air as Luke realized what that meant. If Carlos could see him, then…

Eyes wide in horror, Luke dived towards the stairs, startling Carlos into dropping his glass of juice, but it was too late.

Several things happened at once.

The front door opened just in time for the glass to hit the floor and shatter, spilling orange juice over Carlos’ slippers. The boy startled, but stayed in place, not moving in case he accidently stepped on any shards. Tía Victoria came rushing in, only having enough time to take in the mess and Luke’s presence with a worried frown before Alex poofed in the kitchen, right in front of her. 

She screamed. Alex screamed back. At the same time, another, more manly, scream echoed from upstairs. Luke merely closed his eyes in resignation for a second. 

When he opened them again, Julie’s tía was still screaming, now in spanish, and making the sign of the cross. The only reason she wasn’t sprinting out the door seemed to be Carlos still standing on the other side of Alex.

The screaming upstairs had turned into somewhat loud questions - they could only hear the intonations, but not so much the words themselves.

Alex turned to Luke with terrified eyes. Deer in the headlights expression firmly on his face, Luke tried to think of what to do, but there was really only one answer, and Alex seemed to have come to the same conclusion.

“Julie?”

“Julie.”

“Julie!” They shouted in unison, sprinting up the stairs without another look at Carlos and Victoria. 

They got to the top just as Reggie backed up through Ray’s bedroom door. He shot them a wide eyed look and the weakest, most sheepish smile he could manage.

“Oh, hey guys.” There was cursing from behind the door; something fell over, and Reggie winced. “Yeah, we may have a problem.”

Alex sighed, pushing Reg along to Julie’s room. They had just started frantically knocking on her door when it opened to reveal a still half-asleep Julie. Luke was too busy panicking to think about how cute she looked all rumpled by sleep.

The boys pushed their way into her room and Reggie closed the door softly, but swiftly behind him just as Ray’s door slammed open.

“Guys! What is going on? What’s with all the yelling?” Julie asked, looking at each of them in turn, eyebrows up in expectation, glasses just barely balancing straight on the bridge of her nose.

“I would actually like to know that myself,” Alex said, turning to Luke. “What happened? It’s like she could _see_ me!”

“It’s because she _could_ , man!” Luke jumped in place, restless energy making his hands wave around as he started to pace. “I- I don’t know how, but Carlos could see me, _actually_ see me. A-And then, Alex poofed in and your aunt could see us, and Reggie…” Luke trailed off, half scared of asking exactly what his friend had been doing to make a grown man scream like that.

“I was helping Ray pick out what to wear today,” Reggie said, oblivious to his bandmates’ weirded out stares. “He usually does it before going to bed, but last night he must’ve been too tired from that late night photoshoot that he forgot, so I figured I’d help.” He shrugged, shooting them a satisfied smile for a second before it slipped off his face. “I didn’t mean to scare him, though. Now he’s mad at me.” He pouted, shoulders slumping forward.

Alex sighed as Luke patted Reggie’s back.

“I’m sure he’s not mad, Reg. A little freaked out, maybe, but not mad,” Alex said, reassuringly.

“Wait, wait, wait. Are you saying my family could _see_ you?” Julie asked, suddenly feeling wide awake. “How is that possible?”

“I have no idea,” Luke said, shaking his head, a disbelieving smile on his face.

“Oh, but that means now you can introduce me to Ray!” Reggie said, perking right back up.

Julie could only stare at him, incredulous and dumbfounded all at once. “This… this is freaking me out.”

Before any of them could continue their conversation, Ray and Carlos’ voices drifted up the stairs, apparently where her dad had gone to after leaving his room. He had probably followed Tía Victoria’s screams.

“I’m telling you, they’re ghosts!” they heard Carlos saying.

“No, mijo, there’s no such thing as ghosts, just rowdy teenagers playing a prank.”

Before any of them could react, Julie’s bedroom door swung open and everyone froze.

The boys were standing behind her, closer to the bed, while Julie was still by the door. All of them stared in wide eyed horror as Ray took the scene in, an angry frown quickly forming on his face upon realizing there were three teenage boys in his daughter’s room.

“Dad!” Julie tried for a smile, but she was sure it came out more like a grimace. “Surprise?” When the little jazz hands did nothing but make her father frown harder, Julie dropped the act. They were busted. She sighed. “I can explain.”

“You better.”

“I _told_ you, they’re ghosts!” Carlos pushed his way into the room. “They’re Julie’s ghost boy band.”

On their side or not, Luke couldn’t let it go. “Hey! Who you calling ‘boy band,’ shortstack?”

Alex shot him a glare. “Really? Now?”

Luke shrugged, but didn’t answer.

“Carlos, not now,” Ray said, serious eyes still fixed on his daughter, waiting for an explanation.

“I can prove it.” The boy ran out of the room, leaving behind an awkward silence as Julie tried to figure out what to say.

Finally Ray sighed, shoulders relaxing ever so slightly as he took a deep breath. He noticed as Julie threw a worried glance over her shoulder at the boy with the sleeveless shirt, and watched as he nodded at her in reassurance. 

He hadn’t recognized them at first, too busy worrying about what tricks three teenage boys could be playing on his family on the morning of Halloween, but he recognized them now.

The boy he found in his room going through his closet, of all things, was the energetic bassist on Julie’s band. The one with the sleeveless shirt was the guitarist that was always looking at his niña while they performed, standing way too close for his comfort. The third boy could only be the drummer, his blond hair standing out amongst his brunette bandmates’. He was the only one that seemed to be able to look at him at the moment.

As confused as he was, Ray still remembered one very important thing about these boys: they were the ones who had brought back his daughter’s passion for music. A while back, he had even called them angels. The least he could do now was give them the benefit of the doubt.

“Look, honey, why don’t you and your friends go downstairs and you can explain over breakfast?” He suggested, extending an olive branch. The boys’ snapped their eyes to him, then to Julie, waiting for her answer.

Julie grasped the branch with both hands. “Yeah… Sure, yeah.”

Ray nodded, “Okay, good. And you owe your tía an apology,” he added, pointing a finger at her. “She’s scared out of her mind.”

Alex raised a guilty hand. “Actually, I think that’s my fault.” He grimaced.

Ray raised an eyebrow at the boy’s honesty. “Well, I guess _you_ can apologize to her, then.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Uh, I’m Luke, by the way,” he said, hand half raised for a handshake before he aborted the move and changed it into a wave. It’d be best not to freak the man out even more. “Mr. Molina, sir,” he added, then elboweld Reggie.

The boy startled, but recovered quickly. “Reggie, I’m Reggie,” he said, waving and beaming at Julie’s dad. “It’s nice to officially meet you, Ray. You’re a great dad!” He stopped abruptly when Luke elbowled him again, harder this time.

“What he means, sir, is that Julie has told us so much about you, that it feels like we already met,” Alex lied smoothly. It was only a little white lie, and it wouldn’t last for long anyway. “Oh, and I’m Alex.”

“Ray Molina, nice to meet you boys. Now, shall we?” He gestured to the door. Reggie left first, closely followed by Alex.

Luke lingered, and Ray watched as he passed by Julie, lightly brushing his shoulder with hers and earning himself a small smile. The boy sobered when he faced Ray again, dimpled smile fading into a closed lips, polite one.

The three thundered down the stairs and Ray turned back to Julie.

“I promise I’ll explain, papi.”

“I know, mija. Get changed and come downstairs. Rumor has it, teenage boys leave nothing behind.” He was gone before she could tell him that these particular boys, as much as they’d like to, didn’t eat.

Well, she was sure he’d figure it out soon enough.


	2. Part II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyBODY!  
> ParTY PeOPLe <3
> 
> First of all, I am so sorry for the delay. In my defense, it was the eggs' fault.
> 
> Finally managed to finish editing it, and I'd just like to remind everyone that this might be slightly cracky, so logic? Never heard of her.  
> This was supposed to be a one-shot, but it has spiraled and now I have no choice but to continue with it. 
> 
> Also, especial thanks to the lovely [amandaithink](https://archiveofourown.org/users/amandaithink/pseuds/amandaithink) for betaing this! And honorable mentions to Sam, Isolus and Alana, for checking it out for me. You guys rock! Any mistakes are my own :)
> 
> Nothing is mine except the plot :)  
> (translations are at the end notes)
> 
> HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEREMY SHADA and BOOBOO STEWART!!

**PART** II

* * *

Luke followed the boys downstairs to find Julie’s Aunt Victoria sitting at the table, a glass of water clutched tightly in her hands. As soon as her eyes landed on them, they widened as she prepared to scream again. 

Alex and Luke winced, preparing themselves for it while Reggie stood stock still with wide eyes of his own. Before she could start, though, Ray came downstairs and passed by the boys, stopping in front of his sister-in-law and holding both hands in front of him as if calming a nervous animal.

“Calmate, calmate. It’s okay, Victoria. It’s the boys from Julie’s band,” he said, gesturing behind him to the ghosts. Sheepishly, they waved ‘hello’. “See? No son demonios. Solo tres chicos y una broma que salió mal.”

“Pero, ¿cómo apareció de la nada? Como un fantasma. Te lo dije, this house is haunted. Ay, Dios mío.” Victoria started shaking again, and Ray stepped closer to her chair, putting an arm around her shoulders in an attempt to sooth her.

Needless to say, Alex felt horrible. Without prompting, he stepped forward and didn’t get offended when Julie’s aunt turned terrified eyes towards him. He squatted down in front of her. “Hi. I’m- I’m Alex. I’m so sorry I scared you, it was really not my intention,” he said, looking up at her from underneath his fringe.

Reggie stepped forward next, wringing his hands as he looked at Ray. “Yeah, we really didn’t mean to scare anyone.”

Both of his friends turned to him then, and Luke could only frown at them. “What?” he mouthed.

Alex nodded towards Julie’s dad and aunt.

Luke shrugged. “What? _I_ didn’t scare anyone. Carlos and I were fine before you came in… with, uh, your hologram act,” he added hastily, shooting the adults the most convincing smile he could manage. While it didn’t work on Julie, it seemed her family wasn’t as immune to his charm.

"Holograms?" Victoria whispered, staring at him with shocked eyes. Her hands weren't shaking anymore, though, so he counted that as a win. 

Alex sent him a death glare for the lie, but what was he supposed to say? That they were ghosts? Ray would think his daughter formed a band with crazy people and kick them out of the house faster than he could say 'boo'. Besides, Julie would come downstairs soon enough and she'd clear everything up. All he needed to do was stall and distract, two things he was surprisingly good at (no matter what Alex said).

"Yeah, we came to visit and, you know, since it's Halloween, thought we'd surprise Julie," he forced out a laugh. It was a weak lie, and he could see the doubt in Ray's eyes. He didn't actually want to lie to Julie's _dad_ , but… needs must.

Also, Ray didn't actually seem amused.

"We didn't, we didn't mean to scare anyone. Promise." Luke said, and Reggie and Alex hastily nodded in agreement. 

They stayed like that, just looking at each other; Ray's doubtful gaze and Victoria's bewildered eyes fixed on the three awkwardly smiling boys until three loud growls broke the tension.

Well, some of the tension. The boys only became more tense, looking down at their stomachs as if it had sprouted a mouth of it's own, full of teeth to accompany the growling.

Ray, bless him, laughed. "Well, I did promise breakfast," he said, leading the way to the kitchen and pausing by the stairs to yell for Carlos.

Victoria followed him quickly, still shaken about everything, but maybe more willing to believe they weren't ghosts. Or demons. After all, ghosts don't eat, right?

The three boys in question exchanged freaked out looks, hands holding their stomachs as if their insides were going to fall out.

"Did it just-"

"It can't have-"

"I thought we couldn't-"

None of them were able to complete a sentence, and as their stomachs growled again, their eyes grew even wider.

"I'm feeling… hungry. I'm hungry," Reggie gasped.

"How can we be hungry?!" Alex looked at the others, but they had no answers to give him.

"Me too, I- I- I just-" The smell of bacon drifted in, cutting Luke off mid-sentence. He took a deep breath, "Hmmmm, bacon."

"Oh, gosh, do you think we can-?" Reggie began, taking a step forward as if the smell alone was pulling him to the kitchen.

"First come, first served," Alex announced, not giving the other two time to respond before he hurried towards the source of that wonderful smell.

Luke and Reggie looked at each other before going after him, making slow progress as they continually tried to shove the other away.

By the time they reached the kitchen, Alex was by the counter and Ray was at the stove, one plate with an ever growing pile of bacon next to him.

"Yeah, you take the juice to the table. Victoria's setting up the big one," Ray was saying to Alex. The drummer nodded and only hesitated a second, focusing, before pulling the fridge door open and taking out the juice. He hurried to the table, probably afraid he'd drop the jar if he lost his focus.

Luke noticed the shards of glass and spilled juice had been cleaned from the floor - probably why it took Ray so long to go check on Julie. 

"Oh, anything we can help with?" Reggie asked Ray, hands fiddling in front of him.

"Are you boys going to want some toast?"

"Yeah, sure," Luke agreed quickly. He didn't know what was happening and, frankly, he didn't care, but who knew when they'd have a chance to eat again? He fully planned on stuffing his face. 

"Bread and toaster are on the counter, jam and butter are in the fridge. Don't forget to wash up." 

Reggie and Luke did as he said, taking turns in the sink before moving to get the things from the refrigerator. They brought everything to the counter next to the toaster and got to work. 

"So, I imagine you boys are hungry." It wasn't a question, but as if on cue, their stomachs growled again with the answer.

"Oh, totally."

"So hungry. I could eat a horse," Luke said, biting his lip as another toast popped up.

Reggie gasped, "Dude, not the horses."

Luke rolled his eyes, but Ray saved him from having to answer. 

"You like horses?"

"Oh, definitely!" Reggie said, stepping up beside Ray, leaning against the sink.

After a while of listening to Reggie gush about horses and how he liked (back in 1995, not that Ray had to know that…) to visit his grandparents in the country, Luke figured they had enough toast for all of them, plus the bacon. He balanced the piled up plate, the jam and the butter on his arms and took everything to the table. Alex had been gone awhile and he felt like he should check on him, make sure he wasn't having a heart attack or something.

Once the guitarist left, Reggie leaned a bit towards Ray. "And don't tell Luke," he lowered his voice, "but I like country music too." 

"I take it Luke doesn't like country?" Ray asked with an amused smile.

"He just doesn't think it goes with our sound," Reggie shrugged.

"Eh, that's too bad. I like some country too, and Julie went through that Taylor Swift phase."

Reggie nodded, then shook his head. "Who?" 

Ray laughed. "Boy, I guess Sweden is even farther away than I thought. And airplane food is never the best, must’ve been a long flight."

Before Reggie could ask what Sweden had to do with any of it, Julie came downstairs. She wasn't at all surprised to find Reggie hanging out with her dad, but it was nice to see that the conversation wasn't as one sided as usual.

"Hey, you need some help?" she asked, smiling at Reggie as the boy beamed at her.

"Did you know your dad likes country music? Oh! And who's Taylor Swift?" 

Julie momentarily froze, eyes widening at her dad's back, but if he thought that a seventeen year old not knowing who Taylor Swift is was weird, he didn't comment. 

"Yeah… I'll show you some of her music later."

"Awesome!" If possible, Reggie's smile got even bigger. 

"Here, mija. Take these to the table, will you?" Ray handed her the plate full of bacon and directed Reggie to the fridge with instructions to get the eggs.

"No problem, Ray!"

Julie almost wanted to protest; Reggie carrying any amount of eggs seemed like a disaster waiting to happen. To make things worse, instead of taking out the whole carton, he just picked up the eggs and used his shirt as a makeshift basket and slowly walked towards her dad. Thankfully, he managed not to drop anything and her dad only raised an amused eyebrow at the bassist's antics.

She was just glad the boys seemed to be having a particularly corporeal day.

Before Julie could make her way to the table with the plate of bacons and leave her dad to get started on the eggs, Luke came back in, a frown on his face. He stopped next to her, leaning down slightly.

"What's a _drag race_?" He asked, frowning and pouting just a little. "Like, people in dragon costumes racing each other, or something?" 

Julie held her breath. She wanted to laugh, but his confused face was the cutest thing and she just didn't have the heart to tease him right now. 

With her free hand, she patted him on the shoulder. "No, no…" Julie pursed her lips, exchanging an amused smile with her dad and having to try even harder not to laugh at Reggie's equally confused face. "I'll explain later. Here, hold this." She gave him the plate of bacon and moved towards the fridge, getting the milk and the butter out to hand them to her dad.

"Thanks, mija ."

She offered him a smile, before gently turning Luke around, leading him back towards the table, only to find her tía and Alex deep in a conversation about RuPaul's Drag Race - which explained the dragon racing, even though Julie still had no idea how they'd gotten to that conversation. 

Shaking her head and deciding it was better to not know, she waited for Luke to set the bacon plate on the table and trudged back to the kitchen, the guitarist trailing behind her.

“And it’s sort of like,” Reggie was saying when they entered the kitchen. “ _Home, what is it, really? Sometimes it’s a someone and not a place, it’s that feeling of being safe_ ,” he sang, his fingers mimicking playing the guitar. Next to her, Luke sighed. “ _It’s about who you’re with at the end of the day…_ And for me _, home is where my horse is, riding_ \- Oh, hey, guys! I was just showing Ray my song.”

“It’s good,” Ray said, expertly scrambling the eggs. “I like it. It's true too: anywhere can be _home_ as long as you have the people that matter most with you.” 

Reggie beamed. "Yes! Exactly!"

Luke opened his mouth, fully intending to tell his friend that dads didn’t count, but Julie stepped on his foot to stop him. He yelped, and she raised her eyebrows at him in a way that clearly said ‘Shut up.’ 

“It’s nice, Reggie. Maybe you can show me the whole thing later, and I’ll show you Taylor Swift.”

“It’s a deal!”

Her dad put the scrambled eggs on a plate and handed it to Julie. She moved back to the dining room, leaving Luke to listen while her dad and Reggie talked about country music. 

Soon enough, the table was set. Julie frowned at how much food there was. They'd have a lot of leftovers. Her dad came in from the kitchen and put down the coffee pot.

"Well, sit down, boys. I'll call Carlos before the eggs get cold," Ray said, heading towards the bottom of the stairs to call out for him again. 

'Sit down' must have sounded the same as 'dig in' because Reggie and Luke immediately dropped to their seats and reached for the eggs and bacon, respectively. Fortunately, Alex's fast reflexes were enough to stop both boys from getting their hands on the food as he grabbed their arms.

"Wait!"

Luke and Reggie froze, watching their friend with wide, desperate eyes.

Julie felt her heart break a little. There was so much her boys missed from when they were alive, even eating. And it must've been hard to see all that food spread out before them, _for_ them, and not being able to eat it. She figured that was why Alex stopped them, always the voice of reason.

"The Molinas say grace first."

That… was not what she was expecting. He wasn't wrong, but really, that should be the least of their worries.

"Oh, right!" Reggie sent Victoria a smile. "Sorry."

Tía Victoria seemed to have recovered from her shock well enough, even if there was still the slightest strain on the smile she sent back to him. "It's alright, you boys must be hungry. Carlos will be down soon."

Her dad walked in then, confirming what his sister-in-law said by telling them Carlos was just washing up. He sat at the head of the table, setting his elbows on it and interlacing his fingers as he sent a stern look towards Julie. 

"Well, I'm waiting for that explanation."

She was half hoping he'd forgotten about that.

"Right. Well. I…" Julie started, or tried to, because how do you tell your dad and aunt that ghosts are real without them thinking you're insane? She'd probably be back to talking to Dr. Turner before she could even get to the 'only visible when we play together' part of the story. 

She stared at her father, eyes just begging him to understand without her having to say a word. Pleading with him to just pick the story right out of her head. 

It didn't happen, of course, but he _was_ giving her a worried look and she couldn't have that. He couldn't worry. There was nothing to worry about, really. Well, there was Caleb, but they'd beaten him, so honestly, he didn't have a reason to worry at all. 

Julie took a deep breath, fighting not to start hyperventilating, fingers nervously tugging at the hem of her sweater. She opened her mouth again, words failed to come out, and her dad frowned harder.

A warm hand took hers underneath the table and her eyes snapped towards Luke. 

She hadn't noticed before, but he had automatically dropped to the seat next to her, while Reggie sat across from her, closer to her dad, Alex next to him and her tía at the other end. It didn't leave room for Carlos, but he could always pull up another chair.

Regardless, her eyes locked on Luke's and she could see the questions in them, 'Are you alright?' and 'Are you sure?', and the reassurances, 'We can figure something out,' and 'We'll be here for you.' She looked over at Reggie and Alex, and both of them shot her reassuring smiles.

Squeezing Luke's hand in hers, she turned back to her dad. He'd been observing their interaction, and she noticed how his eyes stayed just a beat too long on her arm that disappeared under the table. Then he looked at her, expecting but not demanding. 

Julie realized she really shouldn't be this reluctant. For once, for some probably crazy reason, her family could see the guys and they would back her up. Besides that, this was her papi; at the very least he'd give her the benefit of the doubt.

Her tía, on the other hand… well, Julie was just glad that she was still shocked enough that it left her uncharacteristically quiet.

She took a deep breath, squeezed Luke's hand even tighter, felt Alex and Reggie bump their feet into hers, and said, "Do you remember when you asked me to clean up mom's studio?"

Once her dad nodded in affirmation, she continued, "Well, that night-"

Carlos' shouts and footsteps thundering down the stairs interrupted her. "I found it! I found it!" Her brother came rushing around the corner, brandishing something triumphantly above his head.

"It took me a while 'cause it fell under my bed and that place is a _mess_ ," he said, skidding to a halt next to her dad. "But here's the proof!" Carlos slapped whatever he was holding on the table in front of their dad, just barely missing the still empty plate. 

The thing, a CD booklet by the looks of it, showed four boys, three of which she recognized immediately and one that she had a good guess as to who it could be.

Julie's eyes widened and this time Luke was the one squeezing her hand. One look at the boys and she knew they were just as shocked as she was.

"Carlos, what-" Ray started, but before he could finish whatever he was saying, Carlos jabbed a finger at the lower part of the picture.

"Summer Tour _1995_ ," he read it out loud.

Tía Victoria, who was leaning forward on the table to see the booklet, frowned, "Is that Trevor?"

Carlos shrugged, turning to his dad with a smug smile while he crossed his arms. "I told you: ghosts!"

Ray stared at the booklet. Then raised his eyes to study the three boys, all wearing deer in headlights expressions. Then looked at the booklet again. 

It was hard to believe, and with technology these days, anything could be edited. He didn't think Carlos had the skills to make something this good, though. And where would he have gotten a picture of young Trevor anyway? And the year…. no, it couldn't be true. But… 

Raising his eyes again, he read the expression on his daughter's face, on her friends' faces. 

Julie rarely lied, and when she did, it never lasted long. Besides, she had never been a great liar anyway. This, though, he could see it in her face - she wasn't lying. 

But if Julie wasn't lying, then that meant-

Three growls filled the quiet room, rumbling from the boys' stomachs and effectively breaking the thick tension. Julie startled, turning incredulous eyes to all three of them.

Lule offered her a sheepish smile before turning to Ray.

"We promise we'll explain, but do you think we could eat first?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Calm down, calm down. It's okay, Victoria. It’s the boys from Julie’s band,” he said, gesturing behind him to the ghosts. Sheepishly, they waved ‘hello’. "See? They are not demons. Just three boys and a prank gone wrong."
> 
> "But how did he appear out of nowhere? Like a ghost. I told you, this house is haunted. Oh my God."
> 
> -  
> I hope you guys enjoyed it!
> 
> Please let me know what you think in the comments below and if you'd like more chapters, or if I should just end it as quickly as possible, lmao.
> 
> Oh! Also! Would you guys be interested in a Jatp+Teen Wolf fanfic? 'Cause I might be writing that.... lmao
> 
> I'll try to update faster :)  
> Love you guys, and thanks for reading <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it!! 
> 
> Let me know if you guys want a part two! :)
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated! 
> 
> \- Love, Vi ♡♡♡


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